ArticleBMJ open2026
Impact of paternity leave on the health of fathers and their families: a scoping review protocol.
Article in BMJ open, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionAs of 2024, paid paternity leave was available in 102 countries worldwide. However, the accessibility and methods of taking paternity leave are influenced by cultural background and individual values, leading to variations in uptake rate. Both positive and negative effects of paternity leave have been reported on the health of fathers, partners and children. A comprehensive understanding of this topic is essential for medical professionals supporting fathers undertaking childcare. The aim of this review is to identify and provide an overview of research related to the impact of paternity leave on the health of fathers, their partners and their children. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: PubMed, CINAHL, Web of Science and Ichushi-Web (Japan's medical literature database) will be searched for published studies, and Google Scholar, ProQuest and CiNii Research (a database used to search for academic information in Japan) will be searched for grey literature. Screening will be performed by two independent reviewers. In this scoping review, we will include studies that focus on fathers taking paternity leave, their partners and their children, regardless of ethnicity or geographic location. This review will focus only on studies related to effects within 3 years after childbirth. We will not restrict study inclusion by whether paternity leave is paid or unpaid, the length of the leave or whether it was taken solely by the father. Furthermore, we will include both English and Japanese literature. The findings of this scoping review will be presented in tabular form and summarised in a way that aligns with the review questions. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This paper does not involve human participants, so approval by an ethics committee is not required. The results of this scoping review will be presented in academic conferences and disseminated in peer-reviewed journals. REGISTRATION: https://osf.io/jsc89.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.